A third species of sharks could disappear
June 26, 2009 – 1:17 am 
A third species of sharks – including the white shark and the shark-hammer – is under threat of extinction.
Sharks, who hunted in the open sea, are particularly at risk: half of these species may be extinct, experts believe the group to study the sharks the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN).
The main cause is overfishing. Shark meat is valued very highly, and in Asia the same like shark fins, which are considered a delicacy good for health.
The results of the most ambitious in the history of study 64 species of so-called pelagic sharks (living in open water ) announced a few days before the international conference on the hunt for tuna. Decisions of this body could play a role in the conservation of sharks. The point is that a significant number – especially blue sharks and mako – becomes a by-product catch in the hunt for tuna and sword fish.
Recently, a sharp rise in the price of shark meat has led some fishermen to engage sharks. Spanish fleet of longliners supposedly fishing hunt fish-sword, but in reality 70% of the catch by weight from 2000 to 2004 amounted to pelagic sharks.
Sharks are particularly vulnerable to overfishing because most species take many years to reach adulthood, and the number of young animals is very low.
Scientists also will soon meet in Denmark to issue recommendations on the protection of Atlantic porbeagle, which, despite the reduction in size, had received no protection at the last meeting of the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora (CITES) in 2007. Measures to protect sharks, which were supported by Argentina, New Zealand and Asian countries have been blocked by Canada.
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